President Boris
Yeltsin told Russian Television viewers on 28 May that the
central bank has enough reserves to defend the ruble and
that ordinary Russians will not suffer from the recent
market uncertainty. He said foreign investors should "feel
confident" that there will be "no collapse" of Russian
financial markets. At the same time, Yeltsin indicated that
"several heads will roll" as a result of recent
developments. The Russian president met with his senior
advisers to discuss plans for coping with the crisis. Central
Bank chairman Sergei Dubinin said after the meeting that
the Russian government is confident that it will not only
cope but will do so in a way that "there will be no such
problems again in Russia." PG

...AS MELTDOWN CONTINUES

Russia's stock and bond
markets continued their downward slide on 27 May and
yields on government treasury bills climbed above 80
percent. At a joint press conference, Central Bank Chairman
Dubinin and Finance Minister Mikhail Zadornov held and
repeated that no sharp ruble devaluation is in the works,
despite the activities of "speculators" leading the latest
attack on the ruble, Russian media reported. Dubinin
announced the second hike in the Central Bank's refinancing
rate in as many weeks--this time from 50 percent to 150
percent (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 19 May 1998). According
to Dubinin, efforts to prop up the ruble have depleted the
Central Bank's gold and hard-currency reserves by $1.5
billion over the last two weeks. Those reserves now total
some $14 billion. LB

KIRIENKO SAYS TAX POLICE WILL TARGET RICHEST
RUSSIANS

Prime Minister Sergei Kirienko said on 28 May
that as part of Yeltsin's effort to cut the budget deficit by
enforcing the tax laws, the tax police will single out the
country's richest citizens, "the majority of whom," he
noted, "do not pay taxes," ITAR-TASS reported. In a related
move, Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Khristenko told NTV
that the Russian government plans to identify on 29 May
firms that are to be subject to bankruptcy proceedings
because they have not paid taxes. PG

DEPUTY PREMIER DOUBTS CONSPIRACY THEORIES

In an
interview with NTV on 27 May, Khristenko said he does not
believe there is a conspiracy behind the latest crises
facing the government. Some Russian commentators have
charged that financial groups are trying to destabilize the
political and economic situation on many fronts, including
orchestrating the recent protests by coal miners and
leading a drive to devalue the ruble. (For instance, some
media financed by Oneksimbank have seen the hand of CIS
Executive Secretary Boris Berezovskii at work.)
Khristenko dismissed speculation about a grand conspiracy
as a "myth" but argued that certain political and financial
groups, which he did not name, are taking advantage of the
crises to promote their own interests. LB

GOVERNMENT TO LOWER STARTING PRICE FOR
ROSNEFT

First Deputy State Property Minister Aleksandr
Braverman on 27 May told journalists that when the
government tries again to sell a 75 percent stake in the oil
company Rosneft, it will lower the starting price, Russian
media reported. For the auction that fell through on 26 May,
the minimum bid was $2.1 billion plus $400 million to invest
in the company. Braverman suggested that the
government's next asking price will correspond to the
evaluation of the international firm Dresdner Kleinwort
Benson, which in March determined that $1.6 billion-$1.7
billion would be a fair price for a 75 percent stake in
Rosneft. The terms for the new auction are to be announced
no later than 1 June. LB

LUKOIL, ONEKSIMBANK FORM PARTNERSHIP

LUKoil
President Vagit Alekperov and Oneksimbank founder
Vladimir Potanin on 27 May signed a partnership
agreement, ITAR-TASS and RFE/RL's Moscow bureau
reported. The oil company and the bank will cooperate on
some oil projects, but Alekperov and Potanin said they will
be involved in different consortiums for the next Rosneft
auction. In addition, the new partnership will not involve
the sale of the Sidanko oil company (in which Oneksimbank
owns a controlling stake) to LUKoil. LB

CHINA CONDEMNS RUSSIAN SHOOTING INCIDENT

The
Chinese Foreign Ministry on 28 May denounced as "drastic"
an incident three days earlier in which Russian border
guards killed two Chinese fisherman, Western agencies
reported. Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhu Bangzao said
that "these measures are not consistent with friendly and
good-neighborly relations with China." Earlier, Russian
officials had said that the Chinese fisherman failed to
respond to repeated warnings, but Zhu said Beijing
believes the killings could and should have been avoided.
PG

RUSSIA REGISTERS CONCERN AT PAKISTANI NUCLEAR
TEST...

Russian Deputy Minister of Nuclear Energy Nikolai
Egorov told ITAR-TASS on 27 May that he is concerned
about the political and environmental repercussions should
Pakistan conduct a nuclear test in response to those
carried out by India two weeks ago. But Egorov added that
he has no precise information about Pakistan's nuclear
plans. Pakistan exploded the device on 28 May. LF

...CALLS ON TURKEY TO WITHDRAW TROOPS FROM
IRAQ

The Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement on
27 May calling on Turkey immediately to withdraw the
troops it has sent to northern Iraq to target Kurdish
insurgents, ITAR-TASS reported. The statement said the
troop deployment is "a serious violation by Ankara of the
fundamental norms of international law, the sovereignty
and territorial integrity of a neighbor country." It called on
Turkey to resolve its problems with the PKK "not by force
but by civilized political methods." LF

OFFICIAL SAYS NEW TAX CODE TO TAKE BITE OUT OF
REGIONAL REVENUES...

Konstantin Laikam, the head of
the Economics Ministry's Finance Department, predicted on
26 May that the new tax code will lead to a 15 billion ruble
($2.4 billion) decrease in regional tax revenues, Interfax
reported. Appearing at a conference in Moscow on
prospects for tax reform, Laikam estimated that two-
thirds of Russia's 89 regions, including the city of Moscow,
would face declining revenues. The Duma has approved the
new draft tax code in the first reading, but the document
may be substantially amended before a final version is
passed. Laikam noted that transfers of tax revenues from
the regions to the federal budget comprised nearly a third
of all federal tax revenues in 1993 and 1994, but that
figure rose to nearly 46 percent in 1997 and is projected
to reach 50 percent this year. LB

...CALLS FOR REVISING DISTRIBUTION OF TAX
PROCEEDS

At the same conference, Laikam called for
changing the distribution of tax proceeds so that the
federal government would receive 56 percent of profit tax
revenues (instead of the current 75 percent) and 20
percent of income tax revenues (instead of the current 6
percent). He advocated retaining the current distribution
of value-added tax revenues, which, he said, are equally
divided between federal and regional budgets. Last year,
the government proposed a new tax code that would have
earmarked most revenues from easy-to-collect taxes
(such as the value-added tax) for the federal government.
That code provoked strong opposition from many regional
leaders and was never approved by the Duma. LB

ELECTION COMMISSION CONCERNED ABOUT
'CHARITABLE' ACTIVITIES...

Central Electoral
Commission Secretary Aleksandr Veshnyakov says his
commission supports a ban on charitable activities by
candidates for political office or by their campaign
structures, "Nezavisimaya gazeta" reported on 27 May. He
noted that the commission has received complaints about
former First Deputy Finance Minister Andrei Vavilov, who
is competing in a 31 May election for a State Duma seat in
the Altai Republic. Critics say Vavilov is trying to disguise
his attempts to buy votes as charity. Agrarian Party leader
Mikhail Lapshin, Vavilov's main rival for the Duma seat, and
two other candidates have appealed to the central and
local electoral commissions, the Prosecutor-General's
Office, and the Duma over alleged violations of electoral
procedures by Vavilov, Interfax reported on 25 May. They
charge that Vavilov is bribing voters and benefiting from
unlawful support by the Altai authorities. LB

...SUPPORTS PROCEDURES FOR RECALLING REGIONAL
LEGISLATORS

The Central Electoral Commission has sent
regional authorities a model draft law on procedures for
recalling deputies in legislatures, "Russkii telegraf" on 27
May. Such laws already exist in 20 regions. The
commission's proposal would allow groups of at least 50
voters to initiate procedures for recalling legislators
whom they do not trust, or who, they believe, have failed
to perform their duties, broken the law, or disgraced their
office. Local electoral commissions would have the right to
set an election on revoking a deputy's mandate if more
votes are cast for recalling the deputy than were received
by the deputy when elected. The newspaper argued that
such a law would allow groups to remove legislators on
purely political rather than legal grounds. It also said the
Constitutional Court ruled in December 1996 that a recall
system has no place in democratic legislative bodies. LB

MOSCOW COURT DEFIES HIGHER COURT RULING ON
RESIDENCE PERMITS

A Moscow municipal court has ruled
against a citizen who appealed against the city authorities'
refusal to register him as a long-term resident of the
capital, "Kommersant-Daily" reported on 27 May. Andrei
Inozemtsev, a native of Lipetsk Oblast, sought a five-year
registration but was told that residence permits can be
issued only for up to six months. The Constitutional Court
has ruled that city authorities do not have the right to
refuse to register Russian citizens as local residents, and
Inozemtsev cited that ruling in his court appeal. The
Moscow court upheld the city's registration rules, although
the authorities did not send a representative to the
hearings. Moscow Mayor Yurii Luzhkov has vowed to retain
the "propiska" system of residency permits, despite the
conclusions of the Constitutional Court (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 12 and 13 March 1998). LB

PROSECUTORS LOSE COURT APPEAL AGAINST
SARATOV LAND LAW

The Saratov Oblast Court has
rejected attempts by the Prosecutor-General's official to
strike down 14 articles in the Saratov land law adopted
last November, "Kommersant-Daily" reported on 27 May.
Among other things, the prosecutor's office argued that
the constitutional guarantee of private land ownership
rights is not a sufficient legal basis for a regional law
allowing the purchase and sale of farmland.
Representatives of the regional administration and
legislature argued that the Saratov law is bolstered by
several presidential decrees, government resolutions, and
existing federal laws. Yeltsin has praised the Saratov land
law and has encouraged other regions to adopt similar
legislation. LB

SAMARA LEGISLATURE PASSES LAND LAW IN FIRST
READING

Samara Oblast is the latest Russian region to
move toward legalizing the purchase and sale of farmland.
The Samara Duma approved a land law in the first reading
on 26 May, "Russkii telegraf" reported. However, contrary
to the wishes of Samara Governor Konstantin Titov, the
legislature amended the law to prohibit foreigners from
buying land. Like its Saratov counterpart, the Samara law
will allow foreigners to rent land. LB

NEW PARLIAMENT SPEAKER ELECTED IN TATARSTAN

Prime Minister Farit Mukhametshin was elected the new
speaker of Tatarstan's State Council on 27 May, RFE/RL's
Kazan bureau reported. Seventy-seven deputies voted for
Mukhametshin's candidacy, which was proposed by
President Mintimer Shaimiev, and 50 for Challi mayor
Rafgat Altynbaev. Mukhmetshin served earlier as
parliament speaker from 1991-1995 before being
appointed premier. LF

RUSSIAN BORDER GUARDS RELEASED IN CHECHNYA

The last seven of the 10 Russian border guards abducted in
the Ingushetian capital, Nazran, last month (see "RFE/RL
Newsline," 16 April 1998) were released on Chechen
territory on 27 May following a joint operation by Chechen
and Ingush security forces, ITAR-TASS reported. Their
three colleagues had been released earlier. Meanwhile the
search continues for Russian presidential envoy to
Chechnya Valentin Vlasov, who was abducted on 1 May.
Chechen Deputy Prime Minister Kazbek Makhashev, who is
in charge of the investigation, rejected Russian media
reports that Vlasov's kidnappers have demanded a ransom.
Russian Interior Minister Sergei Stepashin affirmed on 15
May that Vlasov is alive and that his whereabouts are
known approximately. LF

ABKHAZ PRESIDENT IMPOSES STATE OF EMERGENCY IN
GALI

Vladislav Ardzinba on 27 May imposed a state of
emergency in Gali and parts of neighboring Ochamchira
Raion for three months, Interfax reported. Speaking later
that day at a news conference in Sukhumi, Ardzinba accused
Georgian leaders, including Tamaz Nadareishvili, chairman
of the so-called Abkhaz parliament in exile, of deliberately
provoking the fighting in Gali in order to bring the entire
district under Georgian control and establish joint local
administrative bodies there, Interfax and Caucasus Press
reported. The resolution on Abkhazia adopted by the CIS
Moscow summit in April mandates the creation of such
bodies in order to expedite the repatriation to Gali of
Georgian displaced persons. Ardzinba expressed his
willingness to work for peace and reconciliation but added
that the restoration of good neighborly relations with
Tbilisi is contingent on "a desire for mutual understanding
and compromise." LF

GEORGIAN PARLIAMENT DEBATES GALI EVENTS

Georgian lawmakers on 27 May adopted a statement
accusing Abkhazia of a deliberate policy of genocide and
ethnic cleansing toward the region's Georgian population,
Caucasus Press reported. The statement claims that since
early 1994 some 1,500 Georgian inhabitants of Abkhazia's
southernmost Gali Raion have been killed and 1,000 homes
destroyed. It blames the Abkhaz leadership and the
Russian peacekeeping force for the latest round of fighting
and calls on the OSCE and the UN to raise with the UN
Security Council the question of replacing the CIS
peacekeeping force with an international contingent.
Caucasus Press on 28 May quoted Abkhaz Television as
reporting that 300 Abkhaz were killed during the fighting
of the past week. LF

CONTROVERSIAL GEORGIAN PARAMILITARY
ORGANIZATION STILL ACTIVE

The paramilitary
organization Mkhedrioni, formally banned in late 1995 on
charges of terrorism and involvement in the August 1995
attempt to assassinate Shevardnadze, is still functioning,
Caucasus Press reported. Tornike Berishvili, one of the
group's new leaders, told journalists on 27 May that some
100 Mkhedrioni members took part in the recent fighting in
Gali along with other Georgian guerrilla units. LF

SOUTH OSSETIAN PARLIAMENT ADOPTS NATIONAL
SYMBOL

The parliament of Georgia's former autonomous
republic of South Ossetia has passed legislation adopting a
snow leopard against a mountain background as the
region's national symbol, "Nezavisimaya gazeta" reported
on 28 May. That symbol is very similar to the state symbol
of the Republic of North Ossetia--Alania. South Ossetian
parliamentary chairman Kosta Dzugaev said that South
Ossetian citizens had "persistently demanded" that the
region's parliament adopt a symbol similar to that of North
Ossetia. LF

OFFICIAL, UNOFFICIAL RALLIES MARK AZERBAIJANI
INDEPENDENCE

Two demonstrations were held in a Baku
suburb on 28 May to mark the 80th anniversary of the
declaration of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic in 1918,
RFE/RL's Baku bureau reported. Some 4,000 people
congregated near the cemetery where the family of
Mehmet-Emin Rasulzadeh, one of the ADR's founders is
buried, while 600 people attended a rally convened by the
ruling Yeni Azerbaycan party at a nearby statue of
Rasulzadeh. Police have cordoned off Azadlyg Square in
central Baku to prevent opposition supporters gathering
there. LF

AZERBAIJAN CASTS DOUBT ON ARMENIAN SPY
CLAIMS

The press service of Azerbaijan's National
Security Ministry has rejected as "pure invention" a 23 May
Armenian Television broadcast reporting the arrest of a
Russian former colonel recruited by Azerbaijan to carry
out espionage activities in Armenia, Turan reported on 27
May. The Russian was charged with infiltrating the military
leadership of either Armenia or Nagorno-Karabakh,
according to Interfax. LF

KYRGYZ PREMIER COMMENTS ON ISSIK-KUL DISASTER

Kubanychbek JumAliyev held a press conference in Bishkek
on 28 May to report on the consequences to date of the
sodium cyanide spill into the Barskoon River, RFE/RL
correspondents reported. JumAliyev said more than 1,000
residents of the southern Issik-Kul area have sought
medical treatment and at least 93 have been kept in the
hospital. Two people have died, while eight are in a serious
condition and have been moved by helicopter to better
facilities in Bishkek, he noted. The previous day, Deputy
Premier Boris Silayev said the Kumtor Mining Company was
irresponsible in its handling of the situation, pointing to
the company's failure to inform the Kyrgyz government or
local residents for several hours after the spill. A team of
experts from the World Health Organization is due to
inspect the scene of the incident on 28 May. BP

TAJIK PEACE PROCESS AT STANDSTILL

The 23 May
decision of the parliament to ban religious parties has
brought the Tajik peace process to a halt. A 26 May
meeting of representatives of the nations and
organizations guaranteeing that process yielded only a
statement encouraging the two sides to engage in further
talks, ITAR-TASS reported. The following day, President
Imomali Rakhmonov met with United Tajik Opposition
leader Said Abdullo Nuri behind closed doors, but no
details were provided. Also on 27 May, U.S. State
Department spokesman James Rubin called on Rakhmonov
to use his powers to veto the parliament's decision on
political parties. Rubin said the decision violates the terms
of the peace accord. He also hinted that international aid to
Tajikistan may be threatened if the provisions of the UN-
mediated peace accord are not fulfilled. BP

TAJIK OPPOSITION SAYS NO FOREIGN TERRORISTS ON
TAJIK SOIL

Sultan Khamadov, the UTO's press secretary,
told ITAR-TASS on 27 May that the UTO is neither training
nor harboring foreign terrorists. Khamadov invited the UN
observer mission in Tajikistan to send representatives to
UTO camps to verify his statements. He was responding to
the Uzbek and Kyrgyz governments' claims that the UTO is
providing bases for terrorists whose aim is to commit acts
of sabotage in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. BP

NAZARBAYEV WRAPS UP MIDDLE-EAST VISIT

Kazakh
President Nursultan Nazarbayev concluded his three-day
official visit to the United Arab Emirates on 27 May,
following a trip to Qatar, ITAR-TASS and RFE/RL
correspondents reported. The two Arab countries have
promised to provide $100 million in loans for developing
Kazakhstan's new capital, Astana, and improving
environmental conditions around the Kazakh section of the
Aral Sea. Nazarbayev invited both countries to participate
in Kazakh natural gas and oil projects. He also signed
agreements on trade and economic cooperation and on
setting up embassies in both countries. BP

MINERS PICKET PRESIDENTIAL ADMINISTRATION IN
KYIV

Some 400 miners from the Donbas coal mining region
began an "indefinite picket" of the presidential
administration building in Kyiv on 27 May to demand the
payment of wage arrears, Ukrainian Television reported.
Miners from other regions intend to join the picket on 28
May. The action was organized by the Trade Union of Coal
Mining Workers, Ukraine's largest mining trade union.
Meanwhile, some 1,000 miners from Pavlovhrad are
continuing their march to Kyiv and are expected to reach
the capital by 3 June (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 25 May 1998).
And another 2,000 miners are continuing to camp outside
the oblast administration building in Dnipropetrovsk to
protest wage arrears. JM

BELARUS REQUIRES HUMANITARIAN ORGANIZATIONS
TO APPLY FOR LICENSES

"Belorusskaya delovaya
gazeta" reported on 27 May that Minsk will this week
implement its ruling that all agencies involved in the
distribution of humanitarian aid in Belarus and sending
Belarusian children abroad for medical treatment must
apply for a license to the Presidential Administration
Department for Humanitarian Aid. That department will
issue five-year licenses and is also authorized to revoke
those permits. "Belorusskaya delovaya gazeta" suggests
the government made the ruling to remove "competitors"
from what it may consider lucrative activities and to
distribute aid only to those individuals "favored by the
authorities." JM

LATVIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY SAYS MOSCOW DOESN'T
WANT DIALOGUE...

The Latvian Foreign Ministry has
reproached Russia for being reluctant to develop a
dialogue with Riga and for spreading "distorted
information" about Latvia's citizenship policies, BNS
reported. "All Latvian proposals to strengthen confidence
and understanding have been rejected or distorted,"
Foreign Ministry spokesman Andrejs Pildegovics told
journalists in Riga on 27 May. He added that Russia is also
setting conditions for resuming a dialogue, although he did
not elaborate. "Such a stance is unacceptable to Latvia and
it does not testify to Russia's true wish to have dialogue,"
Pildegovics said. JC

...WHILE ECONOMICS MINISTRY SAYS MINOR IMPACT OF
ECONOMIC MEASURES

The Latvian Economics Ministry
says that Russian economic measures against Riga have
had few repercussions for Latvia's economy, "Diena"
reported on 28 May. It noted that some businesses have
registered losses but stressed that many others are trying
to take advantage of the situation by seeking
compensation from the state for losses that have nothing
do with Russian economic measures. The only considerable
losses, according to the ministry, have been in the fishing
industry, following the reduction in Russian imports of
Latvian fish. The drop in revenues from the oil industry is
related at least in part to the decline in oil prices on the
world market, the ministry added. JC

LANDSBERGIS DENIES INVOLVEMENT IN SURVEILLANCE
SCANDAL

Lithuanian Parliamentary Chairman Vytautas
Landsbergis has categorically denied that he gave orders
to have anyone put under surveillance, BNS reported on 27
May. His denial follows media allegations that the Third
Department of the Interior Ministry had spied on the
country's top leaders (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 26 May
1998). Landsbergis told reporters in Vilnius that he could
recall a handful of cases in which he had asked for
information from the unit about various individuals who had
threatened either him or the leadership in general, but he
added he did not think "these types of psychos" deserve
much attention. The leaders of the unit have also denied
carrying out any surveillance operations. JC

SOLIDARITY LEADER CALLS FOR NEW MEDIA
OVERSIGHT COUNCIL

Solidarity leader Marian
Krzaklewski has called for electing a new National Radio
and Television Council, "Zycie Warszawy" reported on 28
April. His call follows a Supreme Administration Court
ruling annulling licenses to two television stations;
according to the court, the council committed procedural
violations in granting those licenses. The opposition
Democratic Left Alliance and Peasant Party strongly
oppose dismissing the current council members, saying the
Solidarity-led coalition wants to conduct a "political
purge" in the media. The council was set up under the
former leftist government and is widely believed to have
strong links to the opposition. JM

MECIAR IN MOSCOW

Prime Minister Vladimir Meciar met
with Moscow Mayor Yurii Luzhkov in the Russian capital on
27 May and signed a cooperation agreement between the
cities of Moscow and Bratislava, ITAR-TASS reported.
Meciar also met with Patriarch of All Russia and Moscow
Aleksei II, with whom he discussed "various aspects of
modern life in Russia and Slovakia" and particularly
"Slavonic unity" ahead of the celebrations of the Days of
Slavic Written Language and Culture. Meciar is scheduled to
hold talks with President Boris Yeltsin and Premier Sergei
Kirienko on 28 May. In other news, Slovakia on 27 May
rejected a call by the Austrian government to delay
starting up the controversial Mochovce nuclear power
station, SITA reported. The lower chamber of the Austrian
parliament the same day called on the government to take
steps against starting up the plant. MS

SPOKESMAN SAYS ORBAN DENIES GIVING
CONTROVERSIAL INTERVIEW

Andras Klein, a spokesman
for the Federation of Young Democrats- Hungarian Civic
Party (FIDESZ- MPP), told an RFE/RL correspondent in
Budapest on 27 May that party chairman Victor Orban did
not give an interview to the Austrian daily "Standart.".
Klein said the daily published remarks that Orban made
"long ago, even before the electoral campaign had started"
and that even those remarks had been "misunderstood.".
""Standart" the previous day had cited Orban as saying that
Hungary's bilateral treaties with neighboring countries are
"inadequate" in their provisions on national minorities'
rights" and must be revised. He was also quoted as saying
that a new education law must be passed in Romania to
safeguard Hungarian cultural identity. Also on 27 May,
Romanian Prime Minister Radu Vasile said he will ask for
explanations from the Hungarian ambassador to Bucharest,
while Romania's opposition parties have launched a strong
protest against the alleged remarks. MS

HUNGARIAN SMALLHOLDERS DEMAND CABINET POSTS

Independent Smallholders' Party (FKGP) chairman Jozsef
Torgyan, who has been re-elected as the party's caucus
leader, told Hungarian media on 27 May that the FKGP
insists on running a "super-ministry" for developing the
countryside and considers the Interior Ministry to be
"close to its own area of operation." The caucus has
authorized Torgyan to conduct coalition talks with FIDESZ-
MPP. Meanwhile, Bertalan Osztroha, leader of the FKGP's
Borsod County branch, said "a cult of personality prevails
over democracy" in the party. He called for Torgyan's
removal. MSZ

NATO ADOPTS KOSOVA STRATEGY

Foreign ministers of
the 16 NATO member states have agreed in Luxembourg on
a strategy for containing the conflict in Kosova. The
package includes detailed planning for "preventive
deployment" of troops from the Atlantic alliance in Albania
and Macedonia, AFP reported on 28 May. More details are to
be released later today. On 27 May, Russian diplomats said
in Brussels that Moscow wants detailed information about
NATO's plans for Kosova. One diplomat said Moscow has
doubts about the legality of any NATO role in the region.
PM

U.S. BACKS RUGOVA'S LINE

Robert Gelbard, who is the
U.S. special envoy for the former Yugoslavia, told CNN on
27 May that the administration wants Kosovar shadow-
state President Ibrahim Rugova's upcoming visit to
Washington "to demonstrate that the path Dr. Rugova
pursues, one of non-violence, one of support for
democracy, is the right path for Kosovar Albanians to
follow.... We want to show our support for that, and we have
urged other governments in Europe to show the same kind
of support for him." Also in Washington, a State Department
spokesman said that the administration expects the Serbs
and Kosovars to continue their weekly talks even though
this week's session was canceled because of Rugova's trip
to the U.S. PM

RUGOVA SAYS AUTONOMY NOT ENOUGH

Speaking in
Vienna en route to Washington, Rugova told Austrian Radio
on 27 May that the Kosovars will not accept autonomy. They
insist that Kosova become an "international protectorate"
as a transitional stage on the road to full independence. But
in Strasbourg, the Congress of European Local and Regional
Governments passed a resolution calling for the
restoration of Kosova's autonomous status as prescribed in
the 1974 Yugoslav and Serbian constitutions as a solution
to the current crisis. The congress also concluded that
Belgrade must make progress in democratization and
clarify the status of Vojvodina and Sandzak if Yugoslavia
wants membership in the Council of Europe. The congress
also ruled that Belgrade must accept Spain's Felipe
Gonzalez as the sole mediator in the Kosova crisis and not
allow the U.S. to play a predominant role, "Nasa Borba"
reported. PM

EUROPEAN CONCERN OVER SERBIAN BLOCKADE

Doris
Pack, who is the European Parliament's representative for
East European affairs, said in a statement in Brussels on 27
May that the ongoing Serbian blockade of Kosova has led to
"alarming humanitarian conditions," RFE/RL's South Slavic
Service reported. She added that the blockade has not only
cut off normal supplies of food and medicine but is also
preventing 200 trucks containing European humanitarian
aid from entering the region. Pack noted that available
supplies in Kosova are going primarily to the Serbian
troops and paramilitary police. She called for urgent
international pressure on the Belgrade authorities.
Meanwhile in Geneva, a spokesman for the UN High
Commissioner for Refugees said that fighting in Kosova
since February has led to some 34,000 persons being
displaced. Some 3,000 ethnic Albanians have sought refuge
in Montenegro. PM

NANO SAYS BOSNIAN LESSONS APPLY TO KOSOVA

Albanian Prime Minister Fatos Nano told RFE/RL's South
Slavic Service in a telephone interview on 27 May that the
international community has learned from the Bosnian war
that it must act quickly and decisively in Kosova. He added
that Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic "does not have
a future if he continues to behave like a warlord." Nano said
that he is against calling the Kosova Liberation Army
"terrorists" because "desperate people who defend their
homes and their children...[in the face of] massive ethnic
cleansing and violent operations" cannot be legitimately
classified as terrorists. The prime minister urged that
Kosova become a special entity within Yugoslavia, based on
the model of the status of the Republika Srpska within
Bosnia. Nano stressed that Tirana backs Rugova's non-
violent line and tries to prevent arms smuggling into
Kosova. PM

BELGRADE RECTOR QUITS

Dragan Kuburovic, who is the
rector of Belgrade University, submitted his resignation on
27 May to protest the new Serbian law that ends the
autonomy of the universities (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 27
May 1998). He said his decision becomes effective as of 29
May, when the faculty will meet to decide whether to join
the students' call for a "general strike." Several thousand
students protested against the new law outside the
buildings of the Philosophy Faculty. PM

DJUKANOVIC CALLS FOR 'OPEN DOORS'

Montenegrin
President Milo Djukanovic told the Belgrade daily "Novosti"
of 28 May that Milosevic's government is leading
Yugoslavia into ever greater isolation precisely when the
country needs more democracy and more openness to the
outside world. Djukanovic added that Montenegro has
shown the way Yugoslavia should go by "opening all doors"
to the EU, the U.S., and Russia. Montenegrin Deputy Prime
Minister Miodrag Vukovic told "Nasa Borba" that
Montenegrins will make their own decisions in the 31 May
parliamentary elections and do not welcome any pressure
from the outside, by which he presumably meant from
Milosevic. Some 120 international observers will monitor
the election process, RFE/RL's South Slavic Service
reported on 27 May. PM

CROATIA READY FOR 'PARTNERSHIP FOR PEACE'?

William Montgomery, who is U.S. ambassador to Croatia,
said in Zagreb on 27 May that Croatia could become a
member of NATO's Partnership for Peace Program by the
end of this year if it makes sufficient progress in
democratization, in allowing Serbian refugees to return,
and in supporting the Dayton peace process. Elsewhere in
the capital, President Franjo Tudjman received Ante
Jelavic, whom the Herzegovinian Croats recently elected
to head their branch of the Croatian Democratic Community
despite Tudjman's support for another candidate (see
"RFE/RL Bosnia Report," 20 May 1998). PM

ALBANIAN ARMS-TRAFFICKING INCREASES

Police on
26 May stopped three trucks filled with arms, "Koha Jone"
reported on 28 May. The haul included 500 Kalashnikov
machine guns, hundreds of boxes containing ammunition
cartridges, grenades, and mortars. The trucks were
stopped in Fushe Kruja, in central Albania, en route from
Tirana to the north. The drivers fled the scene. Also on 26
May, army officials discovered that some 100 mortars and
an unspecified numbers of anti-aircraft guns have
disappeared from an army storage facility near Tirana,
"Shekulli" reported on 28 May. The daily noted that arms
trafficking has become increasingly profitable since the
recent intensification of the conflict in Kosova. FS

ROMANIAN DEFENSE INDUSTRY PRESENTS NEW
HELICOPTER

The new IAR Puma 330 helicopter produced
in Brasov was presented to journalists on 27 May, RFE/RL's
Bucharest service reported. The helicopter is jointly
produced with Israel's Elbit Systems Ltd. and is equipped
with a modern anti-tank device aimed at bringing Romanian
military forces up to NATO standards. In other news, a
spokesman for the Socialist Party on 27 May denied that
his formation has signed an agreement with seven
parliamentary and non-parliamentary parties to back the
candidate of the Party of Social Democracy (PDSR) in
Romania in Bucharest mayoral elections scheduled for
October. PDSR chairman Ion Iliescu had announced the
signing of such an agreement the previous day. MS

IMF TELLS MOLDOVA TO REDUCE DEBT

The IMF on 27
May said that Moldova's current account deficit is too large
and that the government should stop accumulating external
debts in order to get its economy on course, Reuters
reported. The IMF praised Moldova for progress in the
energy and the agricultural sectors reform but said the
growing external debt and the government's increasing
difficulties to service it are worrying. The fund also urged
Moldova to tighten spending and borrowing controls on
local authorities, restructure its health and education
services, and stop granting tax amnesties and concessions.
MS

BULGARIAN-US ECONOMIC GROUP MEETS

At its first
meeting in Washington on 27 May, a joint U.S.-Bulgarian
economic group discussed ways to strengthen the
Bulgarian economy. The meeting was chaired by U.S. Under
Secretary of State Stuart Eisenstat and Bulgarian Deputy
Premier Aleksander Bozhkov. State Department
spokesman James Rubin said Bulgaria has undergone a
"remarkable economic transformation" under Ivan Kostov's
government. He added that the U.S. will continue to provide
assistance in privatization, tax reform, and reducing the
bureaucracy. MS

ABKHAZ OFFENSIVE RUINS PEACE PROSPECTS

by Liz Fuller

Clashes last week between Georgian guerrillas and
Abkhaz Interior Ministry forces in Abkhazia's southernmost
Gali Raion precipitated a major offensive that has claimed
more than 100 lives and in effect destroyed what tenuous
chances had existed for achieving a formal settlement of
the deadlocked conflict.

On 18 May, Georgian guerrillas from the so-called
White Legion killed some 20 Abkhaz police officers in a
surprise attack. Two days later, Abkhaz forces armed with
heavy artillery launched a counteroffensive against
several Gali villages. Estimates of casualties differ widely,
but it appears that dozens of Georgian civilians have been
killed, as well as a similar number of Abkhaz and Georgian
combatants. In addition, 30,000-40,000 ethnic Georgian
repatriates who returned to the homes in Gali, from where
they had fled during the 1992-1993 war have again sought
refuge on the other side of the border between Abkhazia
and the rest of Georgia.

On 24 May, Georgian Ambassador to Russia Vazha
Lortkipanidze and Abkhaz President Vladislav Ardzinba
agreed on the wording of a protocol on a cease-fire, the
withdrawal from Gali of Abkhaz reinforcements sent there
over the past few days, and the return of the Georgian
fugitives. Meeting in Gagra the next day, Georgian Foreign
Minister Irakli Menagharishvili and his Abkhaz counterpart,
Sergei Shamba, signed that protocol, while the UN special
envoy to Georgia and the commander of the Russian
peacekeeping forces appended their signatures to it.

The cease-fire was scheduled to take effect at 6:00
a.m. local time on 26 May and to be followed within hours by
the withdrawal of forces from the 12-kilometer security
zone on the northern side of the border between Abkhazia
and the rest of Georgia. But hostilities continued for most
of that day, with each side accusing the other of violating
the cease-fire agreement. (Given that the Georgian
leadership has repeatedly disclaimed any connection with
or control over the Georgian White Legion and other
guerrilla forces in Abkhazia, it is unclear how the former
intended to ensure the latter would comply with the cease-
fire.) On 27 May, Abkhaz spokesmen claimed to have
expelled the last Georgian guerrillas from Abkhaz
territory.

It is also unclear, however, whether the White Legion
has in effect been neutralized. Before the most recent
fighting, spokesmen for the Georgian displaced persons
from Abkhazia predicted that failure to expedite the
repatriation of those persons could prompt thousands of
Georgians to join the partisans. Moreover, unclarity
surrounds the alleged links between the White Legion and
the Georgian authorities : the legion is said to take orders
from Tamaz Nadareishvili, the chairman of the Abkhaz
parliament in exile composed of the ethnic Georgian
deputies from the Abkhaz parliament elected in 1991.
Nadareishvili is a member of the Georgian National
Security Council.

The fighting over the past week has called into
question the effectiveness of both the CIS peacekeeping
forces that were deployed in the security zone in 1994 to
oversee the repatriation of the Georgian displaced
persons and of the UN observer force in western Georgia.
One of the White Legion's commanders has charged that the
CIS peacekeepers did nothing to prevent the Abkhaz from
bringing heavy artillery into the security zone in violation
of the cease-fire agreement signed in May 1994.
Nadareishvili, for his part, accused the peacekeepers of
failing to take any measures to protect the civilian
population from Abkhaz reprisals. As for the (unarmed) UN
observers, they were said to have done nothing except
take photographs of the fighting and compile reports to be
sent to the UN secretary-General.

The most serious consequence of the fighting,
however, is the setback to the process of repatriation.
Abkhaz, Georgian, Russian, and UN representatives had
signed an agreement on repatriation in April 1994, but the
Abkhaz had for years systematically sabotaged its
implementation. Moreover, many Georgians had simply
circumvented the repatriation procedure and returned
spontaneously to their homes. After they were forced last
week to flee for a second time, the Abkhaz torched many
abandoned Georgian dwellings. At the CIS summit in
Moscow in late April, participants had agreed on a new
document detailing measures to expedite the repatriation
process. But its implementation was contingent on the
presence of the CIS peacekeeping force, whose withdrawal
the Abkhaz parliament subsequently demanded.

There is also precious little hope that the two sides
can be persuaded to resume negotiations on Abkhazia's
future status vis-a-vis the central Georgian government in
Tbilisi. Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze recently
proposed that Georgia become an "asymmetric federation"
in which Abkhazia, Adjaria, and South Ossetia enjoy varying
degrees of autonomy. Abkhaz President Ardzinba, however,
rejected that variant out of hand, insisting that Abkhazia
and Georgia "establish state and legal relations as equal
subjects of international law." And following the actions of
the Georgian guerrillas over the past few days, the Abkhaz
leadership has even less incentive than before to agree to
a compromise with Tbilisi.